Blog: Capturing My Attention

Standing by the Christmas tree talking to my friends, it did occur to me that I might be in for something more than a little dust in my nose when I sneezed for the third time. Later on the way to my sister's for dinner, one of those friends and I wondered aloud if perhaps I wasn't allergic to the wool in the other friend's scarf, since no sneezes like that had occurred before she stopped by. Later on after dinner when the sneezes kept coming, I wondered again. But sneezes aren't the worst experience I've ever had so I didn't worry.

When I woke up at 4:30a.m. and realized there was a remarkably uncomfortable burning in my throat, I was not amused. After the potty run, turning on the fan, and re-established coziness back in the nest of my bed, I lay there wondering what to do about my 9a.m. meeting and the preparation for the 30 minute drive to said meeting. The meet-ee has children and while they're not babies, it's always best to use courtesy in these situations. I lay there pondering the options for about an hour and finally slept again. At 7 it was worse. Uuuuuugh. Sneezing isn't horrible. Sore throat and congestion is, however, very far from my idea of a good time.

That's when I realized how handy it is to move in with a friend who also has years of mothering experience. Having worked out a later and closer meeting time, Jan hooked me up with some Sudafed and Advil. I've pondered, over the years, the question of whether it's best to let a cold run its course or to take the stuff that "suppresses the symptoms" thereby sometimes prolonging the presence of the cold.

Two hours later, I'm here to make an announcement: Take the suppressing bandaids, people. Do you KNOW how much better a couple of Sudafed and Advil can make you feel? DOOOOO you???? I'm talking serious improvement in my ability to hold my eyes open and walk around without a tissue held ever so pathetically to the side of my burning nose. I mean, I must have known this before. I've taken "stuff" for a cold. But frankly I've spent far too many hours suffering through cold symptoms while holding on to the thought that it was the best thing to do for me.

I'm not about pain. It's been two years since I was really, really sick. Christmas and the week after, two years ago, were spent with a serious flu and I felt so fortunate last year to have had it miss me. But now I'm back to the "on year." Which is about how frequently I get a really nasty winter ick. Whether it's flu or a cold, they always come my way.

So now I've rediscovered the joys of over-the-counter meds and intend to take them regularly until this thing is gone. And I'll cover my mouth with a tissue when I sneeze, stay away from others as often as possible (which is often NOT possible this week of the year when some of us have grossly underestimated our ability to quickly handle all the obligations we've planned for ourselves,) wash my hands endlessly and rest when I can.